Soccer 1v1- Positioning, Angles, and Dilations

Position the goalkeeper so that his shadow exactly covers the goal. Where does he need to position himself so that he is completely blocking the shooter's view? How close is he to the shooter vs. how close is he to the goal?

What is the ratio of the goalkeeper's width compared to his shadow? This ratio is sometimes called the zoom factor of a dilation. Why might it be given that name?

Moving up extremely close to a player is often a poor move for a goalkeeper to make (can you think of some reasons why?) If our goalkeeper wanted to move forward so that he still covered half of the goal instead of the entire width, where would he have to be positioned? Relocate him in the applet below and describe where you placed him in the box below.

What do you notice about the ratio comparing the goalkeeper's shadow to his original width? How does this connect to his position on the field?

We'd have a pretty boring game of soccer if we could only shoot from in front of the goal. In the applet below, try moving the shooter to different positions, and then moving the Goalkeeper to keep covering half of the goal size. What do you notice about the goalkeeper's position? What do you notice about the ratios from before? Does the angle the shooter makes with the goal affect the ratio?

Watch the two short videos below of goalkeeping tips from soccer coaches. Explain how the explorations we did today connect to their advice for beginner goalies.